A door opener that does not require the use of an operator's hands offers a distinct sanitary advantage in hospitals and other medical facilities, in public restrooms and especially in restrooms of restaurants and other food service establishments where patrons prefer that their hands not contact door knobs or handles.
Depending upon use, personnel doors are generally equipped with one of two types of handles: those with built-in latches to permit locking or those without positive latches. The present invention relates to those passage type doors and to doors of cabinets and other enclosures which are not equipped with positive latching means. Closure devices or tension type latches on doors do not interfere with use of the present opener.
Ideally, non-latching, passage doors that swing in two directions could be used in sanitary sensitive establishments so that a person's forearm, elbow or foot, rather than his hand, could be used to push a door open from either direction; however, this is not normally advisable due to safety considerations. Building codes do not permit doors to be installed that will swing into passageways or other common areas since a person could be injured by the unexpected opening of any door along his way. Therefore, most doors are installed only to swing inwardly into a room. These doors can be opened by pushing only from their outward or passageway side.
Except for electronically operated doors which are expensive to install and maintain, no practical means for opening a passage door in a sanitary manner from its inwardly swinging side has been described. Consequently, a need exists for a manually operated, sanitary, door opener that does not require the use of an operator's hands.